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The prominent hill to the east of the Gap, near Lough Mourne, is Croaghonagh, or Cruach Eoghanach, signifying the western boundary of Cenel or Tír Eoghain, while the hill facing it on the western side is Croaghconnelagh or Cruach Conallach, the frontier of Tír Chonaill (www.donegallibrary.ie).
Croaghconnellagh is the 498th highest place in Ireland. Croaghconnellagh is the second most southerly summit in the Bluestack Mountains area. Trackback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/408/?PHPSESSID=ukqsh8hbu7d3ualeig2m8sdl56

From the Barnes River valley at the foot of Croaghnageer (see for previous part of this walk) it is a steep climb of over 1000 ft up the slopes of Croaghconnellagh on pretty wet ground. Light was fading fast on the climb adding to the sense of isolation - the constant sound of running water and the occasional plane overhead were my only companions. A climb of 45 mins brought me to the summit cairn, which is set back from a number of false summmits. It was completely dark now and Donegal Town was lit up to the SE, to the NE the warning lights of a large transmitter mast reached skyward and far below was the noise and lights of cars travelling along the N15. From the little reflected light available I could just make out the water of the two loughs at 003863A, from where a track leads down to the road encircling Lough Eske. There is nothing like travelling in the dark with only the light from your headtorch to show the way. Having said that I still managed to put my foot down a hole and stray into a swampy bog before reaching the track between the 2 loughs. It was a walk of half an hour along this track, which was completely flooded in sections. I went through a gate covered in barbed wire from where the track changed to tarmac and passed a few houses before reaching the road proper. I turned right and followed this road for what seemed like an eternity, even though it was only a few km. The road had high hedges and for most of my journey I had the company of bats flying back and forth into my light in the search for insects. The new B&B at the start of the road to Edergole Bridge stood out like a beacon on the hillside with garish bright lights along the drive polluting the darkness. I reached the carpark at 10 pm after 10 hours of some of the best walking I have ever had the pkeasure to enjoy (endure?). The picture is looking across the Barnes River valley from the slopes of Croaghnageer to Croaghconnellagh. Trackback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/408/comment/1339/

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Picture from Aidy : Looking Southwest to Croaghonagh

Picture: Looking Southwest to Croaghonagh

My Childhood Ideal Of A Mountain

by Aidy 13 Oct 2013

As soon as I began to develop an interest in hill walking, I knew this would be one of my priorities. It made a big impression on me as a child, staring up at it from the car on day trips to Donegal. I would have to press my face against the window to take in its full height. It seemed like the highest, steepest mountain in the world to me. So, I set off to climb Croaghconnellagh today in bright afternoon sunshine with high expectations.

I parked at the Northeast end of Barnes Gap in the car park. A short walk along the N15 brought me to a bridge over the Lowerymore River where I left the road and set off along the left bank of the river (burn really) towards a col on the Northwest side of the mountain. As I ascended the col, I found it too steep so I decided to circle around it to the North and see if there was an easier ascent. Soon after, as I glanced down, I discovered I was well out of my comfort zone. There was a virtually sheer 100ft drop to jagged rocks in the river. I cautiously retreated, dropped down to the river and went up the right bank instead until I found a gentler slope leading up the North side to the summit. This meant crossing the Lowerymore again - might be difficult after heavy rain.

With height, the ground became less boggy and uneven, with lots of granite exposed. In places it looked almost like the Burren. There were lots of false summits with cairns and I wandered round them all, each opening up new vistas. Views were stunning in all directions.

Croaghconnellagh didn't disappoint. Its probably my favourite climb so far (out of a grand total of five!) and it taught me a valuable lesson that beginners always need to be alert to straying beyond their limits. Trackback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/408/comment/15227/

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caution advised!

by Ben Quinn 5 Nov 2013

Think I remember years ago a report of a local postman being killed by a fall on the Road-side of that hill. It gets very steep near the top, just under the masts, and needs to be treated with extreme caution..Perfectly climbable on dry footing, but its steep scrambling! Trackback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/408/comment/15251/

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Picture from Colin Murphy : A selection of the multiplicity of cairns at the summit.

Picture: A selection of the multiplicity of cairns at the summit.

Tough but impressive top

by Colin Murphy 31 Aug 2015

There's no easy way up this hill as it is pretty isolated from everything around it in terms of elevation and pretty much every side of it is steep. In fact some approaches are precipitous. I had the misfortune to have to climb it from the NW after a day's weary bagging and was faced with a 350m steep ascent to round off my walk. I approached from Croaghanirwore and began ascending from the Barnes River at H005 868B. The initial bit was ok, although there is a lot of knee-length grass to contend with. After a few hundred metres the slope steepens and more rocks and boulders appear. The ground finally eases at about 470m elevation. The summit is difficult to identify and there are multiple points marked by cairns, although the one my GPS led me to was at least 10m below another cairn. Suggest you visit the lot to be sure, to be sure! Trackback: https://mountainviews.ie/summit/408/comment/18278/